The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said the risk of COVID-19 transmission onboard is very low.
According to the association’s data; since the beginning of 2020, 44 COVID-19 cases are recorded related to an air travel (including confirmed and potential cases). In the same period, 1.2 billion passengers traveled by plane.
Dr. David Powell, IATA’s Medical Advisor said:
“The risk of a passenger contracting COVID-19 while onboard appears very low. With only 44 identified potential cases of flight-related transmission among 1.2 billion travelers, that’s one case for every 27 million travelers. We recognize that this may be an underestimate but even if 90% of the cases were un-reported, it would be one case for every 2.7 million travelers. We think these figures are extremely reassuring. Furthermore, the vast majority of published cases occurred before the wearing of face coverings inflight became widespread,”
Studies by aircraft manufacturers Airbus, Boeing and Embraer show that in-flight airflow systems limit the movement of particles in the cabin and preventing the spread of viruses.
